Yes. The smaller plate does work. I have different sizes of "dinner" plates! Two different sets. I actually have about 4 sets by default. I'm in between houses a lot so it's a bit discombobulating! HAHA! I need to just force myself to KNOW that the smaller plates are for my or "girl plates" and the bigger ones are for DH or "boy plates"! It could work for me. I do that with other things.

I eat REALLY slowly! Both DH & I do. I think because of our lifestyle, food is an art not a necessity! Like I said I cook 99% of the food we eat. I use NO SALT unless I HAVE to. Which is sometimes the case. I make my own bread and you have to have salt to make it rise. The difference in calories can be good or bad depending on the bread. But, it lasts forever & tastes better!:)) I had company for about a week in Dec. & was shocked by how much food those 2 could put away in 10 minutes!!! YIKES! I eat 1/2 that in 30 minutes. I am healthy as of my last check up so no health issues like thyroid or anything. I just don't think I have a metabolism! I've tried everything to rev. it up. I have been with SP since July 2009.

BTW! I halved my lunch today like I did dinner yesterday! YAY! I did it by putting what I WANTED in a dish and then actually halving it. Low & behold, I WAS SATISFIED!:))

The biggest thing that has helped me to 'stop before I'm full' was to slow down. Eating sitting at the dinner table (not in front of the tv as we had developed a bad habit of previously) and eating slowly and mindfully, even going so far as to physically put my fork and knife down between each bite, helped me slow down a lot. The result is that, rather than finishing my dinner in 10 minutes or less, it can take me up to 30 minutes to finish my dinner now, which is more than enough time for my brain to register that my stomach is telling it to stop.

I've also applied some of the tips that others have suggested in this thread. I serve myself smaller portions, going so far as to use a sandwich plate instead of a dinner plate at times, to help 'fool' my eyes that I was still getting a full plate of food. It's very easy to go back and get more, but it can be very difficult to stop eating something that is high on my favourites list, even though I am already full. It's also easier for me to pack up leftovers that never make it onto a plate, to be used for lunch or dinner tomorrow, or frozen for future consumption.

I have a great idea for you that has trimmed lots of weight from my waist.

EAT SOUP with your dinner. Not just any soup buy home-made vegetable soup, gazpacho, pasta e fagioli, Soupa Tuscano, or tomato soup. They are very low-cal, they help you feel full, and 1 cup of soup = 1 serving of vegetables.

Every year when we go on vacation, my mother-in-law makes herself so sick by trying to eat as much as she can before we go home because she doesn't want it to go to waste. We rent a house and buy groceries to make most of our meals there. We don't usually have much left, a few cooked hotdogs, hamburgers, slices of pizza etc, and the pantry items and dry goods come home with us.

I also feel that eating too much is wasting. Especially when it results in one becomming ill and losing it one way or the other. I serve myself portions that I've tracked and don't have anything left on my plate. I freeze or use the extra on the stove for lunch. When eating at buffet restaurants or potlucks, I use the smallest plate available.

Stop eating leftovers on the kids plates was a tough one for me though (but I have).

TIPYRAIN: What you said DID, in fact, come across as VERY bitchy and defensive, and not at all constructive. You will find that lecturing others about their money and presumed privilege is not the way to encourage people to support you and help you with advice.

One does not have to clean your plate to avoid waste. Treating your body like a garbage can is not doing yourself (nor your wallet) any favors. Do you know what happens when you eat more than you need? It gets slapped right on your hips... as far. So you ARE wasting the food. Just instead of it rotting in a landfill, it's sitting on your backside, your stomach, and your butt. How is that NOT waste?

Instead of forcing yourself to clean your plate to avoid throwing food away, why not simply wrap up t he leftovers and serve them later, at different meals?

Serve yourself less to avoid leftovers, and when you do have them, simply wrap them up and eat them later. No waste, anywhere that way.

Once your calorie requirements are met, it doesn't really matter whether the extra bits of food go in your mouth or the garbage can - they are equally wasted.

Yes, it seems counterintuitive to throw good food in the trash, but most of the time, you don't have to. That last bite of chicken - can be sliced thin into a sandwich or chopped up to top a salad or mix into a soup. Leftover vegetables can be saved for mixing into a soup or casserole, tossed with a vinagrette and turned into a cold veg salad, perhaps mixed with lentils or rice... or simply nibbled on as a snack straight from the fridge. Larger portions of leftovers can go into tupperware and make a nice breakfast or lunch. Leftover rice can be frozen in 1/2-cup sized lumps, making easy-to-reheat perfect portion sizes for future meals.

If it isn't worth saving, it isn't worth eating, and probably legitimately does belong scraped off into the garbage can. Garbage is garbage, you are under no obligation to put it in your mouth.

Thank you all for having the courage to answer my post!;) I honestly apologize for coming across as a meany! I was only trying to express my view about my situation. I didn't mean to attack anyone or accuse anyone of anything. The written word can come across that way. That's why I ended it the way I did. I do cook most of the time. I go out maybe once a month IF THAT. Also, when I cook I omit any kind of oils or butter to prepare the pan or whatever the case may be. I eat chicken and fish mostly. No breading or anything lemon is a wonderful thing! $1.98 at the Wal-mart for a rather large bottle of lemon juice. I need to work on downsizing my portions.

my grandparents lived during the depression. because of how she was raised, my mom was frugal with food.

instead of a clean plate club-we had smaller portions. you could always get more. i didn't have to finish what was on my plate. if i took 2 bites out of my sandwich and was full, she put it away for later.

when my kids were younger, i started getting in the bad habit of finishing the food they left. i guess that would have been ok, if i wasn't eating my regular meals too. those extra bites add up.

there is another thread about issues people have with food form their childhood which has contributed to their weight issues.

If you only put a serving of something (a proper serving) on your plate then you don't have to worry about eating too much. Spark teaches us to plan! If you have 450 calories left for dinner only put 450 calories on your plate! Then you can belong to the clean plate club and all is well in the world.

I remember the clean plate club from when I was a kid. I was such a picky eater my parents had to do something to make me eat. It didn't really work for me, though.

So it sounds like the original poster is being defensive. I'm sorry that you had a tough childhood, but that doesn't give you the right to attack people for responding to your question with tips on how they handle your dilemma. It makes people not want to answer the question! Being scared to throw food away is kind of like food hoarding -- I agree that it's not better to eat it then throw it away -- if it is garbage it should go in the garbage. On the other hand, I agree that if it is salvable save it for lunch tomorrow! Buy some frozen veggies and stick them in your freezer for days that the leftovers aren't enough for lunch, and voila! you've got a healthy precooked lunch.

It sure sounded like that was said with malice. I am 25 and work a minimum wage job and no I cant afford a trainer. Thats not what that is about. If you are overweight because you eat every last bite of everything then maybe you need to reevaluate how you think about food. Maybe you should be putting half your plate in the fridge as leftovers. Maybe yoy should throw out the last piece of pie if you know it is not nutritional and addinf to your obesity. Sometimes the calories that you buy exceed what you need by a lot and ypur health would be better served by NOT eating them.

We all have our individual issues with food, but saying that someone is over privileged and spoiled because they don't have the clean plate issue is just judgemental. Maybe that ia yoye problem not mine.

I also eat everything that's on my plate. I feel if I don't, I'm being wasteful. You could try smaller portions so that you will have a clean plate, but you won't be stuffing yourself just to eat every last bite.

Nice to hear I'm not the only one. Just knowing that DOES help!:)) Read further

WILLOWYGIRL,

I AM one of those who was taught to clean my plate. I'm much older than you & grew up in a single parent, poor household. I HAVE NOT earned the right to throw the food away. It's expensive & better in me than the garbage can. I might as well just throw the money in there!!! I appreciate the fact that you have enough $$$ to be able to afford to do that. If that's the case you should be able to afford a trainer and gym membership as well. Just out of curiosity, you should add up the $ you are throwing away and I think you might change your attitude. I don't mean to be a B****. It's just facts. I do appreciate the tip on the Asian practice & will google it for sure! Thanks for that! I do appreciate you taking the time to respond to my post and please take no offense at what I said it wasn't meant with any malice AT ALL! Good luck to achieving your goals. We are all here to help each other. Not belittle or B**** at each other we get enough of that in life. This is a place for honesty and help! T

I usually leave a few bites on my plate without thinking about it, (which drives my family crazy since they are part of the clean plate club and I'm not). Just remember, you paid for the right to throw out the food. It does not need to get eaten.

In other news, there is a Japanese practice of eating until they are 80% full. Its called Hara Hachi Bu. I think it is a really interesting concept. You might look into it.

DANISARANAC1
Posts:
261
2/6/13 6:40 P

Wish I could help, I'm the same way. And I'm terrible about throwing food away, I can't do it! So even if I do feel satisfied, if there are still 5 bites on my plate, I feel like I must eat them.

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